Eiffel Tower - 130 Years of Grandeur
On March 31st, 1889, after two years, two months and five days of feverish construction, Gustave Eiffel climbed the 1,710 steps of the freshly-finished tower and hoisted a French flag on its topmost mast. It was the culmination of a dream, a project against all odds that would become Eiffel’s crown achievement and the city’s most recognizable structure.
With its distinctive silhouette, the Eiffel Tower is without a doubt the most-recognized symbol of Paris around the world, a landmark monument that was never meant to be.
With 300 mts tall, and visible from almost every corner of the city, this iconic structure has been the favourite spot for tourists and locals alike since its very beginning, making it a silent witness to weddings, celebrations, protests, parades, concerts, victories and defeats throughout its 130 years of history.
At its time, the tower was a technical feat of construction and a massive symbol of technological achievement, demonstrating the superiority of French engineering at a time when the world was imbued in the midst of the Industrial Revolution.
But, how did this iconic building come to happen?
With a team composed by Gustave Eiffel as entrepreneur, Maurice Koechlin and Emile Nouguier and engineers, and the architect Stephen Sauvestre, the design for the tower was selected from among 107 projects presented to the city of Paris in a competition to celebrate the centennial of the French Revolution and crown the Universal Exhibition of 1889.
The original design, conceived by Eiffel and his team of engineers, was a thin and aerodynamic tower composed of four steel pillars joined into one single tower rising to the skies.
Having extensive building experience with bridges, Eiffel put special emphasis in making the tower structure highly resistant to wind forces. But the finished result, although sturdy and mathematically sound, lacked visual appeal.
Sauvestre’s proposed additions - stonework pedestals, monumental arches to link the columns, a bulb-shaped top, among others - were simplified, but bestowed the tower the grace and aesthetic character that became its hallmark.
However, despite all these considerations, construction work on the tower had barely began when a slew of detractors rose against it, considering the structure a garbled monstrosity.
Organized in a group conformed by some of the most respected names in the French arts and literature - including Guy de Maupassant, Alexandre Dumas Jr., François Coppée, William Bouguereau, and Charles Garnier, among many others -, the group published critiques, protests and satyrical cartoons degrading the image of Eiffel and his tower.
In spite of the ridiculing opposition, the construction continued and was completed in record time.
Given the difficulties of the terrain in which it was built, it took 5 months to build the foundations and 21 to complete the assembly of the tower itself.
Following Eiffel’s experience in bridge building, the tower was built using 18,000 separate pieces specifically designed and calculated to match to an accuracy of a tenth of a millimetre and then put together on the site.
The pieces were first assembled in Eiffel’s factory using bolts, which were later replaced one by one with thermally assembled rivets, which contracted during cooling thus ensuring a very tight fit.
It was a feat of engineering construction, using the most advanced techniques of the time.
By the time the Universal Exhibition opened on May 15th, 1889, the fame of the Eiffel tower - predominantly displayed in all posters and material advertising the exhibition - had already reached legendary proportions. Millions flocked to Paris to witness Eiffel’s freakish structure, some betting that it would collapse within days.
But the tower withstood all tests and conquered even the most sceptics, winning even the approval of one of its detractors, Guy de Maupassant.
The Universal Exhibition occupied the entire fields of the Champ-de-Mars, the Trocadero Hill, and the Seine banks up to the Invalides esplanade. Located at the very center of the exhibition, the Eiffel Tower dominated the view and from the very start became the absolute must-see for all Paris visitors.
Part of its attraction was the chance of seeing an unparallel view of Paris from the tallest building in the world (replacing the Giza Pyramids from first place). Some of its notable first visitors included actress Sarah Bernhardt, the Prince of Wales (future King Edward VII) and even William F. Cody, a.k.a. Buffalo Bill.
Added to the thrill of the ascent and the spectacular views, the French newspaper Le Figaro installed a printing room in the tower, producing a special edition of the newspaper every day, which could be personalized by visitors to ‘certify’ they had visited and ascended the tower.
Postcards issued with the image of the tower became a best seller, and its popularity helped to invigorate the postcard industry in France. As an added feature, during the dates of the Universal Exhibition visitors could send letters by balloon (small balloon or parachute) from the tower, like an air-bound ‘message in a bottle’.
Programmed to be destroyed 20 years after its construction, Eiffel was determined to extend the life of the tower by giving it a scientific purpose from its very beginning, installing a meteorology lab on the third floor.
In addition, he encouraged the proceedings of physics experiments on the tower: Foucault’s pendulum, gauging of mercury pressure, observations on gravity, aerodynamics, physiology and radio contacts.
Despite its evident scientific usefulness, the concession granted by the city of Paris was expiring without a change to the tower’s fate.
But in 1909, a military radiotelegraphy antenna was installed, and given the strategic location of the tower, the city of Paris renewed the concession to Eiffel and thus the tower was kept permanently.
Reconstruction of Eiffel's lab in the tower
(shown with Thomas A. Edison)
In 1925, the tower transmitted the first-ever commercial radio broadcast. Currently, the tower is host to 120 telecommunication antennas, which are indispensable for TV and radio broadcasts within Paris and beyond.
In accordance with Eiffel’s fascination with science, the names of 72 French scientists are listed on the borders of each of the four sides of the tower (Trocadero, Paris, Grenelle and Ecole Militaire), and include Lavoisier, Ampere, Foucault, Delaunay, Broca and Daguerre.
The tower has been a source of inspiration for countless artists, writers, composers, film makers and photographers. George Seurat painted it in 1888, before it was even completed, an example later followed by Marc Chagall, Le Douanier Rosseau, and Robert Delaunay, among many others.
"Paris Through the Window” by Marc Chagall, 1913.
Among the writers who have taken the tower as their source of inspiration are, among others, Jean Cocteau, Guillaume Apollinaire, Le Corbusier, Guy de Maupassant, and Roland Barthes.
In addition, the tower has appeared in innumerable commercials, advertisements and films, including a memorable scene in “Superman II”, in which Lois Lane falls to her death in one of the tower’s elevators and is rescued in the nick of time by the man of steel.
It’s been 130 years since the tower that was supposed to last only 20 was built. But time hasn’t decreased its popularity in the least.
Today, the tower welcomes nearly 7 million visitors every year, making it the most visited paid-for monument in the world. Visitors can ascend to all of its three floors by staircase or taking one of its five elevators.
Others opt for more unusual methods.
The Eiffel Tower hosts one of the most original marathons in the world: the Eiffel Tower Vertical - a night time race to climb all 1,665 steps (276 meters) to its apex in the shortest time.
Racers from all around the world come to take part in the Eiffel Tower Vertical, with the latest edition having taken place in March of 2018.
The first race of this type was organized in 1905, but only to the first floor. Since then, climbers, bikers, runners and daredevils have taken to the tower to test their stunts and acrobatics - with or without permission.
At the time of its inauguration, four restaurants sitting up to 500 people were installed on the tower’s first floor, each one designed individually to match its style: a Russian Restaurant, an Anglo-American Bar, a French Restaurant and Flemish restaurant which would later be transformed into a Theatre and changed to Dutch after 1900.
Today, the Eiffel tower hosts an array of restaurants on all floors: the 58 Tour Eiffel (1st floor, French cuisine), the Jules Verne (2nd floor, French Nouvelle cuisine), the Buffets (1st and 2nd floors), the Champagne Bar (3rd floor), and a Macaroon Bar (2nd floor).
Lit from the very beginning with oil lamps, the Eiffel tower now dresses in golden light every night and sparkles for 5 min every hour, with its beacon shining over the City of Lights.
As other iconic buildings in the world, the Eiffel tower changes its colors to send messages of hope, triumph, celebration and condolences, depending on the circumstances.
It is also the favourite site of congregation of Parisians and visitors during the celebrations of the Jour de la Bastille (July 14th) and New Year’s eve, when a festive display of fireworks emerge from its old and beloved structure.
Whether loved or reviled, enjoyed both by tourists and locals, the Eiffel tower is an undisputable icon of the city of Paris, a symbol of hope and of triumph against adversity. On its 130 years, still splendid and sturdy as in the beginning, the tower dreamt by Eiffel is well worth a celebration.
Here’s to 130 more!
To Learn More
Visit the Eiffel tower’s official site, where you can find historical information, tips, maps, pictures and even buy your tickets online!
https://www.toureiffel.paris/en
Sources: Emol.com, Eiffel Tower, Verticale Tour Eiffel.fr
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